'Sleeping on the ground': Fears for dialysis patients safety as shelter closes

Like many remote Territorians, Charlie Yebarrarr Dhamarrandji and Evonne Mitja Wunungmurra have been forced to relocate to Darwin to receive life-saving medical treatment.They each receive dialysis around three times a week, but the short-stay accommodation facility where they've lived for almost three years is about to close its doors."It's so sad to close a good accommodation [facility] like this," Ms Wunungmurra said.The Northern Territory government recently rejected a $3.5 million shared-purchase offer from the federal government to keep Darwin's largest short-stay accommodation facility, YiSSA, open.The facility will shutdown on October 11 this year.Charlie Yabarrarr Dhamarrandji has been caring for his wife and now also requires dialysis treatment himself. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)Mr Dhamarrandji and Ms Wunungmurra described YiSSA as a "godsend" while they navigate treatment and travelling back to Galiwin'ku, in Arnhem Land, for traditional ceremonies."I'm not sure whether we can get another accommodation that's like YiSSA, that has been looking after us for nearly three years," Mr Dhamarrandji said.Ms Wunungmurra said in addition to providing shelter, YiSSA also helped with transport to medical appointments and supported them in other ways."We feel safe here," she said. "Where can we go next?"NT Children and Families Minister Robyn Cahill last week announced a plan to shift the facility's remaining residents to Batchelor, a small town around 100 kilometres from Darwin.Local support worker Chloe Hill said the centre's impending closure had been keeping her up at night.Chloe Hill says she has been losing sleep, worrying about what will happen to the YiSSA residents. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)"YiSSA's really provided a culturally safe space for a lot of our patients — the staff are amazing, the family support, kids are allowed here, they do events for the kids, they do events for the patients as well," Ms Hill said."It's something I'm thinking about quite often, worrying about these patients and what they're going to do and where they're going to go."It makes me quite emotional to be honest.Closure sparks safety concernsMs Hill works with Panuku in Darwin, part of the Indigenous-led Purple House, a health service which supports dialysis patients.The NT's patient transport service takes Evonne Mitja Wunungmurra and others from YiSSA to a nearby dialysis clinic. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)"A lot of our dialysis patients have taken the initiative and moved themselves out and gone to family where they could," she said."It's overcrowded — when they go into these families' houses, the renal patients are staying on the ground, they're sleeping on the ground, it's not safe."She said the accommodation centre's rapid closure was causing confusion and putting immense pressure on YiSSA's staff and related support services."This will result probably in some people long-grassing, which means they don't have a residence to be picked up from for their renal treatment," Ms Hill said."That can result in them missing renal, which can result in them getting quite unwell or worse to be honest — it's quite terrifying."YiSSA has sheltered hundreds of families and individuals without a safe place to sleep in the city — from homeless Territorians, to women and children fleeing domestic violence — connecting them with vital services during their stay.YiSSA will close after the NT government rejected the Commonwealth's $3.5 million offer regarding its shared purchase. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)Ms Hill said YiSSA has a great security team and patients have felt safe, respected and supported there."They don't feel like there's humbug around the location, it's a good location, it's central to all the renal units in the area," she said.'Concerned for everyone' living at YiSSADuring the NT government's relocation announcement last week, Ms Cahill said renal patients were not among those being moved to Batchelor, clarifying YiSSA was "never intended" for medically vulnerable people.Ms Cahill said NT Health was helping patients find alternative accommodation."People who are medically vulnerable, who are getting treatment, have accommodation provided to them, close to where they get those services," she said.NT Health was unable to provide the number of YiSSA residents who received dialysis.Support workers say vulnerable dialysis patients are among those at risk of being forced into overcrowded homes, or onto the streets, when YiSSA closes. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)In a statement, deputy chief executive of NT regional services Fiona Renshaw said there was a cross-government taskforce in place to coordinate transition planning to Batchelor."NT Health is working with relevant agencies to support the continuity of care for patients and their health needs, including dialysis treatment," she said.Ms Wunungmurra and Mr Dhamarrandji said they have found a place to stay in Palmerston, but worried other YiSSA residents with medical issues had not been so fortunate."There's a lot of Yolŋu here and they are still struggling, where do they want to go?" Mr Dhamarrandji said."Because I ask them, 'Where are you going to shift?' and they said, 'I don't know'."Evonne Mitja Wunungmurra misses her grandchildren on Elcho Island while she's away for treatment. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)Ms Hill said it was a shock to lose such a good service so suddenly and her concerns were heightened by the approaching wet season."I don't have words, I'm quite taken back by it and what we're going to do next and how to support these patients," she said."It's a scary time for a lot of these people."We're not only concerned for our dialysis patients, but we're concerned for everyone that's staying here."The couple use the Top End Patient Transport Service while in Darwin. (ABC News: Marcus Kennedy)